Tuesday, December 7, 2010

Today is the day that Sophia Breanne and Alexis Li officially became part of our family! There is no turning back, and we are soooo grateful! As the 12 families in our group gathered around in a circle and heard it declared that the adoptions were official, my heart just swelled inside with such a peaceful, joyous feeling. Adoption is the most beautiful, Godly experience. We are blessed!

Sophi and Lexi are doing FANTASTIC! We are completely enamored with them both. The biggest struggle I have had is not being able to hold them both at the same time, as I am so in love!

Lexi is almost constantly smiling, and her smile is huge! Yesterday she had me in tears as she was just shaking and nervous around us for the first little while-- it just broke my heart. But now she is comfortable and happy. I had to wake her up this morning, and she was so sweet when she heard my voice. She still had her eyes closed, but she immediately smiled as I told her I loved her. She has the sweetest disposition, and giggles a lot! She has the funniest little walk-- we will need to work on it. But other than that, she seems developmentally on target and continues to amaze us at all she can do. Today we went shopping at the Lotus center. This is essentially a Chinese Walmart, but bigger. While we were there, Lexi became agitated and we realized she needed a bathroom. I took off with her quickly to find a restroom. Unfortunately, it all happened so fast, that I forgot to bring the backpack, which had toilet paper and wipes. Most public restrooms in China don't have toilet paper. Well, the bathroom itself was NOT great, and when I realized I didn't have toilet paper, I panicked. Lexi's tummy had been very upset, and we really needed toilet paper, if you know what I mean! In China, people don't flush their toilet paper down the toilet-- they just put it in the trash, so as not to clog up the sewers. So I looked down in the trash and did the only thing I could think of-- I grabbed the some of the used toilet paper. UGH. To make matters worse, there wasn't soap in the bathroom. I tried not to think about what I had just done, and went to meet the rest of the group. But, alas, Lexi needed to go again. THIS bathroom wasn't as nice as the first, as it was flooded. So not only did I have to again use USED toilet paper, I got the bottom of my pants wet as well. Oh, and my scarf too (as I was leaning down to wipe her.) Just lovely. Jeremy got quite the laugh out of my experience.

Sophi is just amazing. EVERYONE is in love with her. She waves her little foot at people and they just eat it up. Today we bought her a bottle that has handles, and she was sooo excited. She can use her toes to pick it up and give herself a drink. It's such a blessing, because she was having such a hard time learning to use the sippy cup we brought for her. Sophi is smiling more today. Almost any time that we smile at her, her face will just light up with the sweetest smile. As we were skyping with the kids today, she said her first word-- "ge ge," which means "big brother." I think that made the boys pretty happy! Other than that, she has only said the word "ball." She's usually just very quiet and soaking everything in. She's become quite spoiled and will cry if we aren't within a few feet of her. (:

Jet lag has been AWFUL for me this trip. Today was the first day I felt semi-normal. I don't do well on little sleep, and when I get overly tired, I can't sleep well. I was so excited tonight to feel like I could blog without literally passing out at the computer. I'm hoping it will get even better tomorrow, and we'll be able to post all kinds of fun pictures!! The internet connection is VERY slow, and I don't have it in me tonight.

Love to you all-- thanks for your prayers and comments and support. These girls have our hearts. They are amazing, and we know without a doubt that Heavenly Father has placed them in our family for a reason, and is watching over us right now. We do feel overwhelmed at times-- and I don't know how in the world I'm going to do it all when I get home and am more on my own. But I have to trust it will work, as I know these girlies are supposed to be here with us. (:

When we fell in love 20 years ago, we started down a path that has been challenging, exhausting, and breathtakingly beautiful. Here we chronicle the blessings and stressings of parenting some pretty amazing children. We think they're the perfect travel companions as we look forward to the next fork in the road. Welcome to our journey.

Jeremy and Christianne

Taylor Jeremy--19

Parker Matthew--18

The red-headed social butterfly, he's our all-star athlete, top student, outdoor-loving, spunky second-born, with a heart of pure gold!

Jessica Anne "Jesi"--15

Our little princess with the big smile, Jesi loves fashion, friends, hanging with her siblings, and vacations. She sparkles!

Jacob Michael-- 6/8/2004

Little one of heavenly birth, born too soon to bloom on earth. You have taught us so much--we love you, Jacob!

Emily Anne "Emmy"--9/28/2005

Emily's exquisite little hands and feet have left their mark in this world. Her body was tiny, but her spirit enormous. We miss her!

Elizabeth Mei "Elli"--14

Elli's world may be dark, but she's the light of our lives! Lover of music, chocolate, and new toys, she fights a courageous battle with autism while bringing joy to all who know her!!

Gracelin Kate "Graci"--20

Showing true grace throughout her battles with heart disease and pulmonary hypertension, our Gracester is loved by everyone! She's smart, gorgeous, friendly, and has faith to move mountains!

Alexander Philip "Xander"--13

With a spunk and smile that could outmatch anyone's, our Xander has not let Cloves Syndrome get the best of him. He's a talented chef, a caring friend to MANY, our best helper, and is full of teenage humor.

Alexis Li "Lexi"--14

Meet the friendliest girl on the planet! Blind from birth, Lexi amazes all of us with her braille skills, determination, talents, but mosly by the way she spends her days SMILING. She is an angel in every way. We are thrilled to have our darling daughter home six years from China!!

Sophia Breanne "Sophi"--10

Her eyes called out to us from half-way around the world. Little Sophi is growing up and we would do anything to freeze her in time! She's beautiful, smart, and coy and can do amazing things with her toes! She has inspired people all around the world and we can't believe she is ours. Sophi = perfection.

Calais Rose "Cali"--18

Charming Cali joined our family in December of 2012. This girl is beautiful both inside and out. Born with spina bifida, Cali is confined to a wheelchair, but that does not keep her from enjoying life to the fullest. She is smart, opinionated, strong, and lovely in every way. She is a light in our family and a magnet for handsome young men!

Conner Allen-- 18

Meet our newest addition! Home three years from China, Conner makes us wonder what we ever did without him. Blind from birth, he will blow you away with his incredible talent on the piano. He is sweet, witty, girl-crazy, kind and finally, OURS! We love you, Conner!

The Dog

Baxter-- 1 year

She begged and pleaded and wrote letter after letter telling us why she NEEDED a dog, and Sophi finally got her wish! Meet Baxter, the cutest mini-audssiedoodle on the planet.